THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The state government is considering the prospects of retaining Intelligence chief ADGP T K Vinod Kumar, who is set to be elevated to DGP grade next month. Owing to the impending retirement of Human Rights Commission Investigation Director DGP Tomin J Thachankary on July 31, Vinod will be eligible for promotion as DGP.
Sources said the government is considering keeping Vinod in the same post even after he gets promoted. If this happens, the intelligence chief post will be notified as a DGP rank post. Belonging to the 1992 IPS batch, Vinod has no technical issues continuing in the post though he is promoted. The reason is that he is junior to state police chief Shaik Darvesh Saheb of the 1990 batch. As per the Kerala Police Act, no officer senior to the state police chief shall be appointed in the police wing.
Besides the trust factor, Vinod enjoys a good rapport with CM Pinarayi Vijayan, which helped him keep the key post since 2017. In case he gets an extension as Intelligence chief, he would continue to serve as the government’s eyes and ears till 2025. This period is crucial for the government as the state will be heading for assembly polls in 2026.
There were rumours the government might go for a re-shuffle as Vinod will be taken out of the intelligence wing owing to his promotion. However, it’s the dearth of suitable replacements that has prompted the regime to think about sticking with him, sources said.
“With Vinod, the trust factor is there. Being a very significant post, there are not many options for the government in terms of replacement. This could work in Vinod’s favour. We have precedence of a DGP rank officer working as Intelligence chief. B Syed Mohammed Yasin served in the post when he was of the DGP rank,” said a source.